Cairo University

Faculty of Engineering
Chemical Engineering Department

Prof. Dr. Mohamed Hanafy

Eng. Hadir Wahid
Eng. Fady Gamal

2011 – 2012
 Design of Vessels under Internal Pressure
(Pin > Pout)
1. Design of Spherical Vessels:
Pd * Ri
t sp  C
2 all * E  0.2 * Pd
Where:
 tsp: Thickness of the spherical vessel, inch.
 Pd : Design pressure, Pd = 1.1 Pmax
 Pmax: Maximum internal pressure (gauge not absolute), psi
 Ri: Vessel internal radius, inch.
 σall: Maximum allowable strength of the material of construction of the vessel,
psi
 E: Welding efficiency, usually taken 0.8 (if not given)
 C: Corrosion allowance,
C = 1/16" for mild corrosion
C = 1/8" for severe corrosion
2. Design of Cylindrical Vessels:
2.1. Design of Shell:

Pd * Ri
t sh  C
 all * E  0.6 * Pd
Where:
 tsh: Thickness of the shell of the vessel, inch.
2.2. Design of Head:
2.2.1. Hemispherical Head:

Pd * Dish
th  C
4 all * E
Where:
 th: Head thickness, inch.
 Dish: Shell inside diameter, inch.

1
 2.2.2. Elliptical Head:

Pd * Dish
th  *K C
4 all * E
Where:
 K: Constant depends on the ratio of head height to the diameter and
can be obtained from the following table:
K 6 4.2 3 2 1.5 1
h/D 0.14 0.162 0.193 0.25 0.33 0.5

Note:
We will take the value of h/D = 0.25 to get K = 2. This value will give
a head thickness near or equal to that of the shell to avoid "welding
bridge" between them.
2.2.3. Dished Head:

Pd * R
th  *K C
2 all * E
Where:
 R: Crown radius, R ≤ Dish (Take R = Dish), inch.
 K: Constant depends on the ratio between the knuckle radius 'r' and the
crown radius and can be obtained from the following table:
r/R 0.06 0.1 0.2
K 1.75 1.5 1.7

2.2.4. Flat Head:

0.5Pd
t h  Dish C
 all * E
2.2.5. Conical Bottom:

Pd * Dish
tc  C
2 all * E * cos 

2
 Where:
 tc: Thickness of the conical bottom, inch.
 2α: Apex angle.

To get 'α' (if not given):

Dish
tan  
2h
Where:
 h: Conical bottom height, inch.
2.2.5.1. Special Parts for Conical Bottom:
a) Compression ring (If α ≤ 30°):
We should get the dimensions of the ring: b, h
2
Pd * Dish tan  
Aring  b * h  * * (1  )
 all * E 8 
Where:
 Aring: Area of the ring, inch.2
 δ: An angle and can be obtained from the following table:

Pd
 all *E 0.001 0.002 0.003 0.004 0.006

δ 13 18 22 25 30

Note:
The minimum dimensions for the ring is 1" * 1" so, we assume one
of them [b or h] and get the other from 'Aring':

3
 If the calculated dimension  1"  take it 1".

If the calculated dimension  1"  take it as it is.

b) Intermediate Part (If 30° < α ≤ 75°)

Pd * Dosh
ti  *K C
2 all * E
Where:
 ti: Thickness of the intermediate part, inch.
 Dosh: Outside diameter of the shell, inch.
Dosh = Dish + 2 tsh
 K: Constant can be obtained from the following table:
α 30 45 60 70
K 1.31 2.01 3.2 3.7

Dosh * ti
2L 
cos 
Where:
 2L: Intermediate part length, inch.
Note:
If you calculate 'α' from the beginning and find that: α > 75°,
calculate the thickness of the conical bottom from the following
equation:

0.5Pd
t h  tc  Dish C
 all * E

4
 Design of Vessels under External Pressure
(Pout > Pin)
1. Design of Shell:

tsh 3
Pc  K * E ' ( )
Dish
Where:
 Pc = The critical pressure, psi
Pc = 4 Pact
Pact = Pout – Pin
 E' = The modulus of elasticity of the material of construction, psi
 K = The collapse coefficient,

Lsh Dish
K  f( , )
Dish t sh
& can be obtained from the following chart:

5
1.1. Steps for calculating the shell thickness:
"
2
 Assume: t sh 
16
Dish Lsh
 Calculate: ,
t sh Dish

 Get (K) from the chart.

 Calculate Pc)cal.
 If Pc )cal.  Pc ) giv. , the thickness is o.k.,

tsh = assumed thickness + corrosion allowance

"
1
 If Pc )cal.  Pc ) giv. , increase the thickness by and repeat the above steps
16
until Pc )cal.  Pc ) giv. .

1.2. In case of tall vessels ( L 6m) :

In this case:
L  K  Pc )cal.  tsh 

So in order to avoid the large shell thickness, we put more than one ring
[stiffening rings] around the tower to protect it from collapse and reduce the
required shell thickness. In this case, the length used in the chart is the
distance between the rings not the shell height:

Lsh
lnew 
N 1
Where:
 Lnew = The distance between rings, inch.
 Lsh = The shell height, inch.
 N = No. of stiffening rings.
As the dimensions of the rings are required, we can calculate it as following:

Pc ) giv. * Dosh * lnew

I
24 E '
b4 bh 3
I  Or I  [According to the shape of the ring]
12 12

6
 Where:
 I = Moment of inertia.
(Calculate (I) and from it calculate the ring dimensions)
2. Design of heads:
2.1. Hemispherical head:

th
Pc  1.2 E ' ( )2
Dish 2
2.2. Dished head:

th 2
Pc  1.2 E ' ( )
R
Where:
 R = Crown radius, R  Dish (Take R = Dish).

2.3. Elliptical head:

th 2
Pc  1.2 E ' ( 3 )
4 * Dish

2.4. Conical bottom:

tc 3
Pc  K * E ' ( )
Dish
As the above rule contains the coefficient (K), the procedure of calculating the
thickness of the conical is the same as that of the shell. In this case the value of
L/D used in the chart depends on the apex angle:
i. If 2  45 :
L h

D Dish
ii. If 45 2  120 :

L
1
D
iii. If 2 120 :

7
Get the thickness of the conical bottom from:

0.162 * Pact.
tc  Dish C
 all * E

8
 Design of Openings
(Pipes & Manholes)
1. In Case of Vessels Under Internal Pressure:
1.1. Design of Neck:
Pd * Ri
tneck  C
 all * E  0.6Pd
Where:
 tneck = Thickness of pipe or manhole, inch.
 Ri = Radius of pipe or man hole, inch.
Note: take the diameter of man hole = 70 cm (if not given).
 σall = Allowable tensile strength of the material of construction of
pipe or man hole (the same value of the shell and its heads), psi.
 C = Corrosion allowance (the same value used for shell and heads),
inch.
 Pd = Design pressure, psi. Pd = 1.1 Pmax (Pmax is the internal pressure
inside the vessel).
 E = Welding efficiency (the same value used for shell and heads).
1.2. Design of Gasket:
The gasket type is chosen according to temperature and pressure as shown in
the following table:
y Working
m Working
Gasket type (Seating temperature
(Gasket factor) pressure (atm.)
pressure, psi) (°C)
Rubber flat 1 200
Rubber with
< 100 < 10
cotton fabric 1.2 400
flat
Steel metal flat 5.5 18000
Aluminum
4 88000 > 350 > 20
metal flat
Ring steel 5.5 18000

9
Stainless steel 6.5 26000 > 350 > 20
Corrugated
metal 2.3 2000
aluminum > 350 <20
Corrugated
3 4500
iron

y  m * Pmax
Dog  Dig
y  (m  1) Pmax
Where:
 Dog = The outside diameter of gasket, inch.

 Dig = The inside diameter of gasket, Dig  Diop

[ Dio p is the inside diameter of opening (pipe or man hole)]

Dog  Dig
b
2
Where:
 b = The width of gasket, inch.
Note: the minimum width gasket available is 1/8", so:
If b < 1/8" → take it 1/8", and in this case calculate new "Dog" from:

Dog  Dig  2 * bact

If b > 1/8" → take it as it is, b = bact
1.3. Design of Bolts:
Dig  Dog
d mg 
2

11
 Qb'  4 (d mg  23 * b) 2 * Pmax   * d mg * b * m * Pmax
b
Qb"   * d mg * * y
2
Where:
 Q'b = Sealing load, lbf
 Q''b = Seating load, lbf
Note: you will calculate the sealing load and the seating load, take the
largest one and substitute in the following equation to get the number
of bolts:

(Qb' )or (Qb" )

nbolts 
fb
fb  
4 (d in  C ) 2 * all ) bolt
Where:
 nbolts = The required number of bolts [4 – 8 – 12 – 16 – 20].
 fb = The force exerted by one bolt, lbf
 din = The diameter of the bolt, inch. [Take it 1/2" or 1"].
 C = Corrosion allowance of bolt [Take it 1/16"].
 σall)bolt = The allowable tensile strength of bolt [Take it 12000 psi].
1.4. Design of Flange:

Qb f  f b' * nbolt ) act

f b'  
4 * d in2 * all )bolt
Where:
 Qbf = The actual load on flange, lbf
 f 'b = The same as fb but without corrosion allowance.

Ds  Diop  4" if P  6atm

Ds  Diop  7" if 6  P  25atm

11
Where:
 Ds = The bolt circle diameter, inch.

Do f  Ds  2 * E
Where:
 Dof = The outside diameter of the flange, inch.
 E = the edge distance, inch. "E" can be obtained from the next table:
din (inch.) E (inch.)
1/2 5/8
1 17/16
2 2

Qb f * l * 6
tf  C
 * D f *  a ll
D f  Di f  2 * h '
Ds  ( Di f  2 * h ' )
l 
2
Where:
 tf = The thickness of flange, inch.

 Dif = The inside diameter of flange, inch. ( Di f  Dig  Diop )

 h' can be calculated from the following equation:

 Ds  Di f  h ' 
2.4 * Qb f   
 2

  2  
'
hact 
 ( Di f  h ' ) all
To get h':
- Assume h' = 1" and get h'act.
- If h'act ≤ h', so your assumption is correct and take h' = 1".
- If h'act > h', assume new value for h' [e.g. 1.5"] and get h'act and so on.

12
 1.5. Design of Flat Cover: (in case of man hole only):

0.162 * Pd
t f .C .  Ds C
 all
Where:
 tf.c. = The flat cover thickness, inch.
1.6. Design of Reinforcement Ring: (for openings diameters > 2")

t1 * Doneck  t2 * t3  t1 * t2  t32  ( Db  D0neck ) * t3

Where:
 t1 = The shell thickness.
 t2 = The opening thickness.
 t3 = The ring thickness, Take it 1".
 Db = The outside diameter of the ring.
2. In Case of Vessels Under External Pressure:
2.1. Design of Neck:
The thickness of opening (pipe or man hole) is calculated from the following
equation:
3
 t neck 
Pc ) cal  K * E' 
 Di 
 neck 
Calculate tneck from the above equation in the same way used in calculating
tshell of vessel under external pressure and using the same chart of "K". In this
"K" will be function of:

 lneck t neck 
 , 
 Di 
 n eck Din eck 
If "lneck" is not given take it in the range: 50 – 70 cm.
2.2. Design of Gasket:
- Take the gasket type the same as the material of construction of the
shell.

13
 - In the equation of "Dog" previously mentioned, put "Pact" instead of
"Pmax".
2.3. Design of Bolts:
- The diameter of the bolt (din) will be always 1/2".
- Calculate Q"b only as it will has the largest value.
2.4. Design of Flange:
- For calculating "Ds" we will always use the equation:

Ds  Diop  4"
2.5. Design of Flat Cover:
- In calculating the thickness of flat cover (tf.c.), put "Pact" instead of
"Pmax" in the equation.

14
 Design of Tall Vertical Vessels
(L > 6 m)
After calculating the shell thickness from previous design methods for vessels
under internal and external pressures, we should check that this thickness will
withstand the loads applied on it. This check is done on three cases: operation,
shutdown and erection.
1. Check for Operation:
The following conditions should be achieved:

 comb.st. ) uw   w   d   L   all E
"" Internal , "" External 
 comb.st. ) dw   w   d   L  y p 3
"" Internal , "" External 
Pd Dmsh
L 
4(t sh  C ) E
Where:
 Dmsh = The shell mean diameter, Dmsh = (Dish+Dosh) / 2.
 "Pd" is used in case of vessels under internal pressures, and replaced by
"Pact" in case of vessels under external pressures.

L
( Pw * 0.7 * Doins. * L) *
w   2
4 * Dmsh * (t sh  C ) * E
2

Where:
 Doins. = The outside diameter of insulation, Doins. = Dosh + 2*tins.
(If there is no insulation, put Doins.= Dosh)
 L = Shell length, inch.
 Pw = The wind pressure, psi. The wind pressure can be obtained from
the following table:

15
 Wind Pressure (Pw, psi)
Shell Height, inch.
Internal Region Coastal Region
0 - < 360 0.138 0.2
360 - < 600 0.174 0.27
600 - < 1200 0.2 0.347
1200 - < 6000 0.27 0.42

1.1  wt
d 
 * Dmsh * (t sh  C ) * E
 wt  wt ) shell  wt ) heads  wt ) ins.  wt ) liq  wt ) trays  ...
wt ) shell  4 ( Dosh
2
 Dish
2
) L *  shell
wt ) head  12 ( * d sp2 * t h *  h ) * N heads
d sp 
 34 Dish  elliptical , d sp  R  Dished 
wt ) ins.  4 ( Doins.  Diins. )  ins. * L
2 2

wt ) liq.  4 Dish
2
* L *  liq.
N ) trays
wt ) trays  ( wt ) tray unit .area) * 4 * Dish
2
*L
L
wt ) lining  4 ( Dolin.  Dilin. ) * L *  lin.
2 2

wt ) conical  
2

  * H conical Docon.  Docon. d i  d i
2
     * H D2
 Dicon.d i  d i2   * 0.28

conical icon
 
 12   12 
  * H conical ( Dicon
2
.  Dicon. d i  d i )
2

wt ) liq.in.con.    *  liq
 12 

2. Check for Shutdown:

 comb.st. ) uw   w   d ) shutdown   all E
 comb.st. ) dw   w   d ) shutdown  y p 3

Note: in case of shutdown, σd is calculated from the same equation of operation

but don't put the weight of liquid in Σwt.

16
3. Check for Erection:
 comb.st. )uw   w   d ) erection   all E
 comb.st. ) dw   w   d ) erection  y p 3

Note: in this case we only put the weight of shell [or shell + one head] in Σwt. in
the equation of σd.
 Design of Skirt Support:
Assume: Disk = 0.95 Dish
Dosk = 1.05 Dosh

Dosk  Disk
t sk 
2
Where:
- Disk = The inside diameter of skirt support.
- Dosk = The outside diameter of skirt support.
- tsk = The thickness of the skirt.
Check on the thickness of the skirt:

 comb.st. ) uw   w   d ) erection   all E

 comb.st. ) dw   w   d ) operation  y p 3

L  lsk 2
Pw * Dosk. * 0.7 * ( )
w  2
msk . (t sk .  C ) E
 2
4 * D
Where:
- lsk = The height of skirt support, lsk = 2 – 2.5 m

wt ) shell  wt ) head  wt ) skirt

 d ) erection 
 * Dmsk * (t sk  C ) * E

17
 1.1  wt  wt ) skirt
 d ) operation 
 * Dmsk * (t sk  C ) * E
 Design of Bearing Plate:
Assume: Dib = 0.8 Disk
Dob = 1.2 Dosk

 comb.st. ) dw   w   d )operation  525 psi

L  lsk 2
Pw * Dosk * 0.7 * ( )
w  2
 
 4 
Dob  Dib
4
 * 
64
 Dob 
 
 2 

1.1  wt  wt ) skirt
 d ) operation  
4 ( D 2
ob  D 2
ib )

Dob  Dib 3 comb.st.)dw

t C
2  all
Where:
- t = The thickness of the bearing plate.
 Design of Anchor Bolts:

 tension) max   w   d )erection

Where:
- σw is that calculated above in the bearing plate.
- σd is calculated from:
wt ) shell  wt ) head  wt ) skirt
 d ) erection 
4 ( Dob  Dib )
 2 2

If σtension) max = - ve value: the number of bolts equal 4 used for fixation.

18
If σtension) max = + ve value: the number of bolts calculated from the

following equation:

 tension4 Dob2  Dib2 

N )bolts  
4
* ( d in  C ) 2
*  all. bolts

Where:
- σall).bolts = 12000 psi.

19
 Design of Short Vertical Vessels
(L < 6m)
In designing short vessels, we firstly calculate the thickness of shell and heads
according to the operating pressure [i.e. internal or external]. In this case we will not
do checks on the thickness as done in tall vessels so, we will design the support
directly.
 Design of Lug support:

1.1*  wt. 4 * Pw * Do' * H * h * 0.7

fs  
N Dbolt * N
Where:
- fs = The maximum compressive / support, lbf.
- N = Number of supports (lugs). Minimum No. of lugs = 4 [Take it 4 if
not given].
- Pw = Wind pressure, psi.
- D'o = The biggest diameter in the vessel, inch.
D'o = Dosh (If there is no insulation)
D'o = Doins. (If there is insulation)
- H = The shell length (tangent to tangent), inch.
- h = The length from the point at which wind effect appears to the end
of the lug length, inch.
h = h' + 0.25 H
- h' = The lug support height, inch.
h' ≥ 0.25 H + 2m [Use this rule only when h' is not given]
- Dbolt = The diameter of the circle passed through bolts, inch.
Dbolt = D'o + 20"
After calculating fs, you should select the dimension of pipe (lug) and check on
your selected dimensions [i.e. check if the lug supports will withstand the load applied
on it]. Following are the steps used to select the suitable pipe dimensions:
1. From the following table, assume nominal diameter to get the inside
and outside diameter of the pipe:

21
Begin your assumption with nominal diameter = 2" [always take the
Schedule number = 80].
2. Calculate the radius of gyration (r) from the following equation:

I
r 
Ap ip e
I ca l.  
64
D 4
op  Di4p 
Ap ip e  
4
D 2
op  Di2p 
21
 Where:
- Dop = The outside diameter of the pipe, inch.
- Dip = The inside diameter of the pipe, inch.
- Ical = Moment of inertia, inch4.
- Apipe = The area of the pipe, inch2.
h'
3. Calculate the value of .
r
4. Make the check on the selected pipe dimensions according to the value
h'
of . Those values are summarized in the following table:
r
h' h' h' h'
 60 60   200  200
r r r r

Fcritical  5 * f s
fs  all.
fs  pipe
 2 * E ' * I min .
The Check
  allpipe Apipe 1  h' 
2 Fcritical 
Relation Apipe 1 *  h'
 all. pipe
r I min .  I cal.

Note:

Take  all. p ip e
 15000 psi if not given.

5. If the corresponding check is not correct, assume another nominal

diameter [greater than 2"] and repeat the above steps.
Note:
If you increase the nominal diameter several times [for
example till 20"] and the check is still not verified, increase
the number of lug supports [6, 8,…].

22
 Design of Bearing Plate:
Assume:

Db p  2 * Do p

Ab p  4 ( Db p ) 2
Aeffective  0.7  0.8 Ab p
Where:
- Dbp = The diameter of the bearing plate, inch.
- Abp = The area of the bearing plate, inch2.
- Aeffective = The effective area of the bearing plate, inch2.
In order to check on this assumption, use the following formula:

 comb.comp.) max
  d   w  525 psi
1.1 wt.
 wt.) lug
d  N
Aeffective
4 * Pw * Do' * 0.7 * H * h
w 
Aeffective * Dbolt * N
If the check is not correct, increase the Dbp till the check become correct.
Note:
If you increase the diameter of bearing plate several times [for
example till 6Dop] and the check is still not verified, increase
the number of lug supports [6, 8,…] or make more than plate
instead of one plate. Those plates are in the form of layers as
shown in the figure:

23
 Lug Support

This will distribute the stress on the plates instead of being

concentrated on only one plate.
 Design of Anchor Bolts:

 tension) max   w   d )erection

Where:
- σw is that calculated above in the bearing plate.
- σd is calculated from:
wt ) shell  wt.) head
 wt ) Lug
 d ) erection  N
Aeffective

If σtension) max = - ve value: the number of bolts equal 4 used for fixation.

If σtension) max = + ve value: the number of bolts calculated from the

following equation:

 tension * Aeffective
N )bolts  
4
* ( d in  C ) 2
*  all. bolts

Where:
- σall).bolts = 12000 psi.

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 Design of Horizontal Vessels
Like short vessels, in designing horizontal vessels, we firstly calculate the thickness
of shell and heads according to the operating pressure [i.e. internal or external]. Here
also we will not do checks on the thickness as done in tall vessels so, we will design
the support directly.
 Design of Saddle Support:
The horizontal vessel is supported on at least 2 saddles supports. The saddle
support consists of sheet and rabbles:

Sheet

Rabble
Bearing
Plate

Sheet

Rabbles are used to reinforce the sheet and prevent its bending.
The distance between the two saddles "c" can be obtained from the following
equation:

c  l '2a Or c  l '2b
Where:
- l' = Lsh + h
Lsh = The shell length, inch.
h = The height of one head, inch.
In case of elliptical or dished head: h / Dish = 0.25 → get h.
- a = b = The distance from each support to the end of the shell, inch.
a  b  0.207 * l '
You should check if the distance between the supports "c" is sufficient or not.
The following are the two checks on the distance "c":

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 yP
 Comb.Comp.   M   L 
3
""  Internal , ""  External 
 Comb.Ten.   M   L   all. * E
""  Internal , ""  External 
Pd * Dmsh
L 
4(t sh  C ) E
Max.Moment
M 
4 * Dosh * (t sh  C ) E
 2

Where:
- Dmsh = The mean diameter of the shell, inch.

Dish  Do sh
Dmsh 
2
- In case of vessels under external pressure, put "Pact." Instead of "Pd"
the equation of "σL".
- Max. Moment can be calculated from:

Max.Moment  1
47 * q * l '2
 wt.
q
l'
Where:
- q = The maximum weight / unit length, lbf / inch.
Note:
If the above 2 checks are satisfied, the distance between the two
supports is o.k. and if not we can decrease the distance between
the two supports or put a third saddle support in between the
other two supports or we can increase the thickness of shell [by
1 / 16"].

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 Now, we should choose the dimensions of the sheet:
Assume:

t sheet  1.5"2"
 Area sheet  t sheet * l"
Where:
- tsheet = the sheet thickness, inch.
- l" = The sheet width, inch.

l"  Dish * 120

180
To check on this assumption:

fs yp

Area sheet 3
 wt.
fs 
N
Where:
- N = No. of saddles.
 Design of Bearing Plate:

Sheet
Rabble

Anchor Bolt
Bearing Plate

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 The dimensions of the bearing plate are:
Width = 12" – 15"
Length = l" + 6"
Assume:

Abp  12 * (l"6)
Where:
- Abp = The area of the bearing plate, inch2.
Check on this assumption:

f s  wt.) saddle
 525 psi
Ab p
Where:

wt.) saddle  wt.) sheet  wt.) rabbles

wt.) sheet  l"*t sheet * hsaddle *  steel
wt.) rabbles  N rabbles * 0.5 * 3 *10 * 14 *  steel
- hsaddle = The height of saddle, inch. [Take it 1.5 – 2m if not given].
- Nrabbles = No. of rabbles = 8.
Note:
If the check is not satisfied, increase the area of the bearing plate
[i.e. increase the width to 13" or 14" …. Or the length to l"+8 or
l"+9 Or increase both the width and the length].

 Design of Anchor Bolts:

As the wind has no effect on horizontal vessels, the number of bolts required
is 4 bolts only for fixation.

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